The Drinks Master: Our columnist from Le Cordon Bleu is here to help confused Christmas preppers choose a dessert wine November 1, 2018 Choosing a dessert wine is often a topic that comes up at the end of a meal. While most of us know what we like in the way of a red, white or rose, it is the sweet wines that can leave people a bit baffled. Mulled wine is synonymous with Christmas; there’s nothing more [...]
Will struggling high street retailers survive the crucial Christmas period? November 1, 2018 Trouble came in threes for the high street yesterday. Struggling retailer Mothercare announced hundreds of redundancies as part of its turnaround plan while 600 jobs hang in the balance as high street butchery chain Crawshaw collapsed into administration. Meanwhile, retail bellwether Next’s shares fell eight per cent in early trading as it revealed its sales growth [...]
Nintendo second quarter profits hit eight-year high, but still miss expectations October 30, 2018 Nintendo failed to meet analysts' expectations despite reporting an eight-year profit high for its second-quarter profits today, thanks to sales of Switch consoles and games. The figures The Japanese gaming giant revealed that profits grew 30 per cent year-on-year to hit 30.9bn yen (£214.17m) between July and September. Yet analysts were underwhelmed after estimating profits to [...]
Bentley could halt production after ‘damaging’ no-deal Brexit October 30, 2018 A no-deal Brexit could be “quite damaging” for Bentley’s annual profit, and may force it to close stop production for a few days, the company’s chief executive said today. Adrian Hallmark said his firm is already stockpiling parts and switching some imports from the port of Dover to Immingham. The carmaker could consider more contingencies [...]
Hey PRs, no one in August is counting down to Christmas and quit the obnoxious intros October 30, 2018 Billy from a TV production company writes: “Hello Elena, I know you simply can’t wait to kick off the festive season and are counting days until Christmas.” Top marks for presumptuousness, Billy. You “know” that I “can’t wait”? I can, actually, because I don’t celebrate Christmas. You also suggest that I am “counting days”. Are [...]
Beer and cider duty frozen for the next year to support pubs and patrons October 29, 2018 Beer and cider duty has been frozen for the next year to support British pubs. The Chancellor Philip Hammond announced the move during the his Budget speech and confirmed spirits duty would also frozen. He said it was “for the patrons of the great British pub”. But the duty on wine will increase with inflation [...]
Interiors: London’s newest retail and design hub Coal Drops Yard is now open in a revamped King’s Cross October 29, 2018 Dressed in high-vis, I stood in the autumn sunshine in King’s Cross for my sneak peak of the newest district to open within its regeneration project – Coal Drops Yard, which opens today. While I waited for my tour, I was diverted by a hording plastered with covers of The Face from 1991 – magazines [...]
Flybe shares continue descent despite winter flights boost October 29, 2018 Shares in budget airline Flybe continued to fall this morning despite the company increasing its winter schedule. The UK company began its 2018/19 winter schedule, increasing its number of weekly flights by six per cent to 2,835. Shares dropped more than three per cent on Monday to 12.3p, having been priced at 37.5p at the [...]
Tech firms lead the drop as US stock markets head for worst month in nine years October 27, 2018 The US stock market took another hit on Friday as the S&P 500 was "on the cusp of despair" after it fell by almost 2 per cent. The market was on the edge of correction territory after disappointing forecasts from leading technology groups triggered a wider sell-off as investors continued their retreat from risky assets. The [...]
British shoppers show signs of ‘more optimism in their outlook’ October 25, 2018 British shoppers are showing signs of cautious optimism in the run-up to Christmas, as low levels of unemployment and rising wages suggest a slight uptick in spending confidence. Just over a quarter of UK retail consumers think they will be better off in the next 12 months, marking an improvement in sentiment compared with last [...]